What.
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| Live album by Bo Burnham | ||||
| Released | December 17, 2013 | |||
| Genre | Comedy | |||
| Length | 1:15:56 | |||
| Label | Comedy Central Records | |||
| Producer | Bo Burnham, Christopher Storer | |||
| Bo Burnham chronology | ||||
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what. (also Bo Burnham: what.) refers to both a stand-up comedy routine and the derivative album by American comedian, Bo Burnham. Following the credible success of his first comedy special, titled "Words Words Words" in 2010, which cumulated in winning the Edinburgh Comedy Panel Prize, Burnham disappeared for 3 years to write and record his new show. Wanting to escape from the boundaries of ordinary stand-up comedy, he slowly crafted a bizarre, theatrical hour featuring music, prop comedy, observational jokes, and miming.
The live performance debuted at the Regency Ball Room in San Francisco on December 17, 2013, and the album is derived from a special live performance of the same set. In addition to the live performance, the album has 5 studio singles, "Repeat Stuff", "Eff", "Nerds", "Channel 5 News", and "Hell of a Ride". The entire show was paid for by Burnham himself and released for free on YouTube and Netflix, whereas the album was released via iTunes the next day. As of November 2016, it has 12.2 million views on YouTube.
Bo Burnham rose to fame after posting songs on his YouTube page with satirical, funny slants. He signed to Comedy Central Records and released his debut EP, "Bo Fo Sho", in 2008. In 2009 he released his debut album, Bo Burnham (album), a collection of his most popular songs on YouTube. Burnham toured extensively during this time, gathering material for his first official Comedy Central hour. "Words Words Words" was released in 2010 at the House of Blues in Boston, to critical acclaim. In 2011 Burnham finished voted #1 in Comedy Centrals Stand Up Showdown, and won the Edinburgh Fringe Comedy Prize for "Words Words Words". Following this success, Burnham opted to take a break from stand-up comedy and work on other material. Resenting the stigmas around traditional comics, he set out to write an hour that was theatrical, musical, and wacky. In the 3 years he was absent, he wrote a book of poetry Egghead (or You Can't Survive On Ideas Alone), which became a New York Times Bestseller, and wrote and starred in his own mockumentary, Zach Stone Is Gonna Be Famous on MTV. He began touring for "what." in late 2012 to test out new material. The show was released on YouTube on December 17, 2013.
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